The Body-Mind Connection and Psychosomatic Illness

The body-mind connection is a powerful and universal force that
exists in your life, often without your being aware of it. It is the
main driver of your health, whether you realize it or not.

'Let's not forget that the little emotions are the great captains of our lives and we obey them without realizing it.' ~ Vincent Van Gogh, 1889

Millions of people suffer from body-mind problems or illnesses. Your mind has a powerful influence on you and your physical health, as I have discussed in "How Emotions Affect our Body." You may want to read this article first, and/or my body window article to better understand the body-mind connection. Your body is the manifestation of who you really are inside, or the state of your soul.

I will also use the term psychosomatic illness in this article,
interchangeably with the term body-mind connection, to mean a physical
manifestation of an illness of emotional origin. It is a term that
often has a negative connotation in our culture, referring to an illness
that is "all in your head." Instead of realizing that the body-mind
connection is at work, we think of psychosomatic illness as something
someone cooks up for their own personal gain or for some other crazy
reason.

Nothing could be farther from the truth. The phenomenon of the body-mind connection is universal. Absolutely everyone is physically affected by their emotions.
The only difference, from person to person is the degree to which our
emotions are physically manifested. We all carry around our emotional pain in our bodies.

The more I read on this subject, and the more I see in my
practice, the more fascinated I become, that we do not embrace the
concept of the body-mind connection in our culture. I can find
quote after quote, from history, where prior cultures have embraced this
knowledge, going as far back as the ancient Greeks. Why is it that our
culture cannot seem to accept that the body and the mind are one and
the same? Most non-Western cultures embrace the body-mind connection,
why can't we?

Peak One, Summit County, Breckenridge, Colorado

Is modern, western medicine so technology driven, that we cannot see
what is right in front of us? Or is it just too much trouble to take
the time to deal with it? Is the Western, fast-paced lifestyle ruining
our connection with our selves?

Why are we as a culture and as individuals unable to grasp the concept that we hold our psychic, chronic pain in our bodies?

Dr John Sarno, is a medical doctor who specializes in physical
medicine and rehabilitation, a specialty that treats neuromuscular
disorders such as chronic back pain. Back pain is recognized as one of
the most common psychosomatic illnesses.

Dr Sarno believes that modern medicine is grossly negligent when
it treats symptoms of psychosomatic illnesses, but not the underlying
cause. He states that the single most powerful tool for healing illness
of the body-mind connection is becoming aware that this connection
actually exists.

He works collaboratively with therapists to help his clients,
with real, physical pain, to understand the mental and emotional origins
of their condition. Dr Sarno, like me, believes that the physical
symptoms are the body’s way of sending the message that the conscious
mind is unable to acknowledge. The process
of pain that is initiated by the brain is there to protect you
from the emotions, that he says may be too painful, too sad or too threatening for you.

Never has there been a time that you need to come to the awareness of
your body-mind connection. It is vital and essential for your
continued health. It is unbelievable and unforgivable for our society
to ignore this phenomenon.

So you might think that people would say, "I refuse to believe it
is my fault that I am ill." However, Dr. Sarno has a different
opinion. In fact, from his experience, the opposite is true!

Dr Sarno states that none of his patients ever have gotten upset,
thinking that somehow a psychosomatic illness is "my fault." In fact, they become empowered by the knowledge that the very cause of their illness ~ their brain ~ is the very thing that will heal them and make it all go away!

This information is not negative, but empowers people to know how to heal! The simple cause of their chronic pain is due to the suppression of unacceptable emotions. All of this is subconscious, which is why awareness is the key.

Once you become aware of your own mental causes, and your
body-mind connection, the back pain will go away, or the neck pain, the
skin condition, the allergies, or what ever your case may be. Your
brain can re-connect you to your body and help you heal. Treating back
pain may be as simple as treating your brain!

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